Agriculture Next Big Frontier For Youth Entrepreneurship: LG

Asserting that agriculture and allied sectors are the next big frontier for youth entrepreneurship, Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Friday inaugurated a series of agri-infrastructure facilities and urged young people to develop innovative solutions tailored to the region's climatic and local challenges.

Sinha also addressed the launch of the startup outreach programme, which brought together researchers, innovators, young entrepreneurs and farmers from across Jammu division.

The Lieutenant Governor cautioned the youth of Jammu Kashmir against simply replicating foreign models, urging them instead to study their own fields, farmers, climate and local challenges, and to build solutions suited to the region's specific needs.

"Today, there are startups worldwide continuously exploring new possibilities in agriculture and allied sectors. The biggest message from these startups and new innovations is that agriculture and allied sectors themselves are the next big frontier for innovation," he said after the inauguration of a series of infrastructure projects at Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology (SKUAST) here.

Sinha said different countries have innovated for their own problems, and now it is time for Jammu Kashmir to innovate for its own questions and challenges.

Startups globally are exploring new possibilities in agriculture and allied sectors, citing technology-driven initiatives in countries such as the Netherlands, Israel, New Zealand and Brazil, he added.

"The biggest message from these startups and new innovations is that agriculture and allied sectors themselves are the next big frontier for innovation," Sinha said, urging students to understand their own fields, farmers, climate and local problems and customise solutions accordingly.

The newly inaugurated facilities include the Unnati Girls Hostel, Centre for AI and ML in Agriculture, Centre for Mushroom Research and Innovation, Advanced Sericulture Laboratory and Centre for Digital Media and Publication.

Describing the facilities as more than physical infrastructure, Sinha said they represented a commitment to the region's innovators, entrepreneurs, researchers and farming families.

The Lieutenant Governor said India's employment aspirations were changing, with youth increasingly seeking to create jobs rather than wait for employment opportunities.

"Your degree is not your destination; rather, it is like a runway for your flight of success. SKUAST-Jammu will give you knowledge, but your curiosity will give you new thoughts and ideas. Your courage will turn that idea into a startup," he said.

Sinha also called for diversification beyond traditional farming and encouraged young and progressive farmers to explore cold chains, grading and packaging units, regional branding and digital marketplaces to connect Jammu and Kashmir's agricultural produce with markets in Delhi, Dubai and beyond.

Emphasising women's role in entrepreneurship, he said no entrepreneurship revolution could be complete without their equal and active participation.

He called upon the university and stakeholders to support women's self-help groups and farmer producer organisations with access to finance, technology and markets and encourage women entrepreneurs who create employment opportunities for others.

On the Startup Outreach Programme, Sinha said its focus was to reach farmers and rural youth who might not have had prior exposure to incubation, mentoring or venture capital.

SKUAST has so far selected more than 150 students for idea incubation and supported 56 promising startups, while extending its outreach to remote parts of the Jammu region, the Lieutenant Governor said.

He felicitated eight startups, FPOs and cooperative/rural enterprises for their contributions to agriculture, allied sectors, value addition and rural enterprise development.